The Pieces Lie Where They Fell
by My Vantilene
Summary: After Albedo's escape from the water-submerged submarine, he finds himself at Azmuth's mercy. But is that really such a bad thing, what with that new assistant of his? Albedo x Eunice
1. Chapter 1

Standard disclaimers apply.

_Hello, world! I have no knowledge of how Ben 10 fanfics work. And, as we all know, sometimes the actual fandoms are different from the way fanfiction will perceive them to be. Take Young Justice, for example, Robin, the detached and reserved, esoteric fighter we all know him to be, is now an accident-prone emotional wreck that always is playing the role of damsel in distress. Not that I don't love both variations, but, as I'm sure you've gathered, they're a little different from one another. So I shall rely on the show for a rubric as to how the characters may act or interact and leave the rest up to my imagination. So if I'm wrong, blame my horrible memory. This chapter begins sort of betwixt the end of Alien Force, and after Eunice has encountered Ben. Slightly AU. _

Chapter I

His head was throbbing at ungodly speeds, his brain taking on a pulse of his own. His vision was transitioning from black to white, but he settled on gray after a time. He didn't know where he was, everything surrounding him was like a far off dream, as he was lightly existing at the moment. He was barely gripping everything else, but the bursts of pain in his mind brought him back to his putrid human form. However, as moments went by, he could feel himself drifting off again. A forceful hand brought him back to reality once more with a gentle tug. This time he was finally able to break the cycle, existing fully within the white.

"W-Wha-" he barely was able to sputter before his eyes met with the owner of the hand. It was a girl in a pale pink tank top and alabaster shorts. She beamed vibrantly at him once she realized he was conscious. The first thing he really took note of from the strangely cheery girl was that she was human. Skin a pale citrus color, lips a faint scarlet, eyes jaded with a certain happiness, hair raging in a sallow flame atop her head. She was a rather attractive human. That caused a thought in him to spur. He looked down at himself. His skin was still that same color, meaning he was still human from the time he blacked out to the time he woke up. He was sitting in a ghostly white chair. In fact, the whole room around him was completely emerged in white.

"Azmuth! He's awake!" she called over her shoulder. That's when he started to panic. All memories prior to this experience suddenly flooded his already overloaded mind. He remembered Vilgax double crossing him and the submarine sinking – he had swam to safety, some strange island that was far from deserted then – then – then nothing. Everything else was blank. What was he doing here? More importantly, how did Azmuth find him? He'd certainly be put back in the Null Void the moment Azmuth laid eyes on him…so what was he doing in this white room instead of a cell?

"Hmm…" came a familiar voice as he noticed the Gavlan at the girl's feet, "What do you think we should do with him, Eunice?"

So, Eunice was the girl's name? Wait – _Eunice_. That kind of reminded him of…

"I thought you were just going to put him in the Null Void."

"Hmm…" he smiled, "You're right. I was going to do that, but…" he turned to Albedo and spoke in a harsher manner, "Show me your wrist." After a pause, he followed the order and rolled up his sleeve revealing just a red band around his wrist.

"Hmm…it seems he has no control over the Omnitrix or Ultramatrix…He's not much of a threat in Ben's body…"

"Then what shall we do with him?"

"We could destroy him. Or we could just put him in the Null Void, as you said. Or…" he smirked, "We could make him useful…"

"Useful how?"

"Test, experiments, trails. I want to know how he still stays in his default form without the watch. Maybe this red band actually does have some meaning. I'm a Galvan, after all. This is the kind of stuff we take care of. Also, he has the red and white blood cells of a human. We could definitely concoct something that would benefit that race. Maybe find a cure for that pesky cancer. Or – hmm – well, the possibilities are endless, really."

"Will he be hurt?" the question seemed irrelevant to both Galvans. Why would she care about his pain?

"Well, that is another question I think these tests will answer. But for now, that is none of your concern." She nodded, and glanced down at the white tile, "But since you seem to already be more affiliated with this case than most of my other assistants, I will trust you with the task of watching him. See to it he does not escape." He ordered, then exited the room. A chilling silence fell over the two. She slid against the wall until she fell into a sitting position, with her hands clasped around her knees.

"Why – why did you ask that?"

"Ask…what?" she questioned tentatively, her voice unsteady.

"If I would be hurt or not. Why would you concern yourself with something so…so…"

"So important as another creature's pain? I don't know. I have a severe case of empathy, I guess." She giggled. This caused a light smile to rise upon his lips. Slightly, as he told himself later, he slightly smiled.

"So, you're an empath?"

"Um…I'm not sure. Maybe an empath is somewhere in my – I mean. It could be in my…um, DNA."

"I see." He nodded, his eyebrow rose dubiously, this cryptic statement piquing his curiosity – Eunice, _Eunice _– Why did that name sound so familiar? "So, _Eunice_," he tested it on his tongue to see if that would spark a discovery, "Where are you from?"

The girl might have been naively concerned with a prisoner's wellbeing, but she was not stupid. She knew where this conversation was headed.

"I could ask you the same question."

"You could…but you didn't. _I _asked _you_. So, Blondie, are you going to be a good hostess and share?"

"Eh. I guess it couldn't do that much harm if you know. I'm Gwen Tennyson's sister."

"Sister? I didn't know Gwendolyn had a sister."

"Well, we're kind of half-sisters. We share the same dad, but…" she looked faintly into the distance, making her inwardly pat herself on the back for her ingenious acting, "I wish we shared the same mom as well. My mom kind of…well, she's not around anymore. And her job wasn't exactly…_savory_. We moved around a lot when I was little. My dad wanted another family over mine. And my mom barely wanted me. And I…" her voice faked a crack, "I have no idea why I'm telling this to a complete stranger. Worse –a prisoner!" Something like concern emanated from his eyes. But after a moment, it was gone.

"Well, Eunice, if it's any consolation…I could tell you about my past."

"Really? You'd do that?"

"It seems only fair."

"I guess that's true…"

"Well, now, where to begin?" he sighed, as he began his tale.

_AN:_

_Cliffy! And OMSG. I was checking out Eunice's wiki page – just to make sure I got all my facts right – and apparently I'm not the only one who realizes Eunice's marking on the back of her neck resembles that of the Pulse I'cie from Final Fantasy XIII. And yeah – Eunice is faking that story. For reasons that have to do with my main plot. Now, I'm not even sure I'm going to see this story through. That depends on reviews. And yeah, if anyone reads my YJ fics, I'm kind of thinking of dropping To Silence a Mockingbird even though I had SO many plot twists that were brilliant! Why? Because I only got one review last chapter and – eh – if no one's really reading it, then there's no point in writing it. I think the only demographic that was even reading in the first place were the fangirls that just love to distort Robin's original character design. Though, the story was supposed to be very serious, no fun and games – even though the first two chapters are dealing with Robin being de-aged – I think nobody read it because of that fact. ANYWAYS. I need to stop ranting. REVIEW!_


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Don't get your hopes up.

_Enjoy, my dearies._

The overpowering antiseptic's malodorous aroma stuck to his nostrils as the operating table was wiped off, making it sterile for a not-so-sterile operation. Azmuth motioned to Eunice to bring him in.

"What tests did you have in mind?" he inquired casually, running an interested eye over the medical utensils lined up for the special procedure.

"Tests that will not be disclosed at this time. Eunice, would you hand me that 0"4' needle? And the scalpel," he smiled sadistically at his captive, "if you would be so kind."

"Yes, sir." She nodded, her voice fraying at the end. She grabbed the two requested tools and handed them to Azmuth, who was on the shoulder of the surgeon he had hired. He passed it to the caninidid and whispered in his ear the instructions, and left the operating room with a good-natured laugh that bounced off the walls with dripping malevolence. The notion alarmed the blonde for a moment before she shook it off with one her cheerful smiles. She turned to Albedo.

"If you would just hold still for a moment…" she pressed his shoulders down on the slab of metal, positioning him just the right way. She mustered another iridescent smile before scurrying out of the room. After she had exited the room and was out of the vision of Azmuth or his staff, she broke out in a run, but the screams caught up with her sooner than expected. It was bloodcurdling, really and made her feel the sensation of trickling, cold blood drip down her shirt at the sound of it. It was so loud – so horrific. And it came from a voice that sounded like her friend's. But she shook her head, and continued to walk down the onyx hallway, assuring herself it wasn't Ben's voice. It was Albedo. But somehow, that just made her feel worse. Much, much worse.

* * *

It was after the surgery that she was ordered to bring him lunch (a cylinder of compressed nutrients that in no way, shape, or form qualified as chili fries). In all honesty, after hearing how horrendously they were torturing him, she didn't think she had the guts to face him. But when she did, it was from assuring herself that the crime he committed against Azmuth was just as horrendous as his treatment. But…after hearing a back story like the one he had shared with her…it had a certain level of difficulty. She opened the steel cell's door and called, as cheery as she could,

"I have lunch." The opened door casted a shadow of light that filtered through to the dark room with little trouble. It revealed the floor, a leg of a metallic bench, and even some of the corner, but there was no Albedo in sight.

"Albedo?" she questioned, taking a step forward in, "Albe—" she was cut off my a sharp intake of air after the door slammed behind her, and all that could be seen in the dark cell was the faint glow of the cerulean cylinder that would have to qualify as his lunch. She felt someone's arm brush up against hers and jumped twenty feet in the opposite direction.

"Calm down, Blondie." He attempted to keep his voice smooth and flippant, but it came out as a croak from how weak and strangled his vocal chords felt.

"A-a-are you…okay?"

"Peachy." He grunted as he rubbed his bloody arm.

"Um…do you mind if I open the cell door? It's kind of…_dark_…in here…"

"I thought you were going to just be in and out? Give me my slop and go? Why would you need a light for that?"

"It's just that…it's dark in here."

"Yes, you mentioned that before."

She lifted up the cylinder and the light it emanated, however small it might have been, set a glow upon both of their features, and they quickly realized their faces were closer than anticipated. He was the first to move back, with Eunice being a little more than stunned. She froze for a second and smiled again.

"I should just give you your slop and go, shouldn't I?"

"It would be wise." He replied, all the emotion out of his tone.

"No arguing with that."

"Yes. No one is arguing with that." After a time interval of thirty seconds, he finally spoke up again, "And you're still here because…?"

"Oh. Yeah. Right." She quickly placed the tube of nutrients at her feet, swung open the door, gave a brief, nervous smile, then darted out of the holding cell corridor as fast as she could.

* * *

She came back in to his cell for dinner, albeit a few hours late, due to faulty wiring in her recently-fixed watch (you'd think the maker of the Omnitrix would be able to figure out the mainframe of a simple wrist watch). When she opened the door that time, she left a brick in the door way so it wouldn't close on her again.

"Albedo…?"

There was no reply once again. She rolled her eyes at his repetitive antics and placed it on the floor swiftly, in somewhat annoyance. He couldn't honestly be pulling this a second time in a row.

But as she turned to go she heard a light groan. She looked over her shoulder and saw a glimpse of a red-clad arm. She opened the door wider, letting the light reveal him sleeping on the metal bench. She stifled a giggle at the sight. He just looked…_innocuous _with that calm and peaceful expression on his face. He may have been a Galvan ex-con mad scientist, but he was still in the body of a sixteen-year-old boy. She just had to remember the mad scientist part if she was going to keep this job.

_AN:_

_This took me an __**hour**__ to write because my sister was blasting Cobra Starship and Florence + The Machine while I was trying to work. And I'm still not satisfied with it. It's short, rushed, and does not support my main plot. But, oh, well. Nice Guys Finish Last at 290% volume (according to my AMAmazing comp) is too much for a thirteen-year-old to handle anyways, trying to juggle writing on top of that is just insane. Either way, hope you enjoyed the filler xD_

_And can you believe Eunice is not on the character list on this site? I'm going to try to contact FF about that and see if we can't fix this little problem... _


End file.
